Chrysalis

"I still don't understand why I have to be the one to wear this," Leeroy grumbled.

"You know exactly why," Brendant was having none of her sibling’s nonsense, "because we asked this crafter to make it to fit you, since you're the one most in need of extra protection."

Leeroy fidgeted and wiggled and the many, many different pieces of equipment were attached to her carapace by the fussy crafter, who constantly had to poke and prod the council member to get her to be still.

"Stop your fidgeting,” the crafter scolded, "the point of this armour is to keep you alive."

"That's why I don't like it," the soldier muttered.

"What was that, Leeroy?" Brendant demanded.

"Nothing! Nothing at all."

"You've been warned any number of times to adjust your attitude," Brendant told her wearily, "you aren't a hatchling anymore, stop acting like it. It's your responsibility to fight, yes, but also to do everything you can to preserve the investment the Colony has made in you. Do you think everyone is given complete core evolutions like you? Does every ant in our family receive the personal education of the Eldest? You need to stop being so selfish."

Leeroy endured this lecture in dignified silence, she'd heard the same thing many times before. At times she wondered if she was just built fundamentally different compared to the rest of her siblings. She just couldn't see things the same way they did. But the Eldest had spoken, and everyone appeared to accept their word. All Leeroy could do is continue to secretly plot and plan her own glorious contribution to the greatness of the Colony. Something that this new armour would actively seek to impede!

Already she hated it.

"There are five cores powering the enchantment matrix," the crafter was saying, "two of those are here and here," she thwacked the metal with an antenna to indicate the locations, "which help to regulate the weight of the heavier plates."

tightening the straps for the helmet as she

earth mana and the cores help to enhance that stability and

a thick carapace that housed a powerful musculature. Even with the enchantments lightening the load, the full set of armour still weighed over a ton, a soldier

to help hold the suit together. She didn't have high expectations for this project, but looking at the final product now, she had to admit that she was impressed. Leeroy had been transformed from an indomitable soldier to something else entirely. The helmet gave her the visage of a fearsome demon, the folds of the metal that protected her eyes cast her features into shadow. Plates of metal swept down the sides of her head and curved around her mandibles, jutting forward beneath them to protect

covered her abdomen and thorax, with the most attention given to the plating down the sides of her body. Virtually no protection was afforded to the underside of the carapace. The idea

armour were also excellent. The crafter had done an incredible job of building an internal structure on the inside of the metal. The joints cunningly inserted would allow the armour to flex whilst the

now but test it. Are you happy

one final tour around the indignant form of her test subject, checking straps and brushing her

"It's ready."

ants cleared space to allow the two big soldiers some

I'm going to enjoy this!"

the next ten minutes, she charged, bit and battered her sibling as Leeroy stood and absorbed the punishment with a resigned attitude. From the side, the crafter watched intently, her heart pounding in her chest. She needn't have worried, her work

than I expected," the soldier observed as she stepped back. "Although carrying all that weight can’t be good for your

stronger soldier specimens would be able to wear a suit this heavy," the crafter informed her, "for other castes, such as the generals, a more lightweight version would be

Leeroy, time for revenge, let's

Without the threat of very real, mortal danger, she just couldn't become enthused. She shook her body to settle the armour,

crafter’s eyes shone as she watched that charge. The power, the force, the

could, but it was for naught. When the fusion of steel and insect that Leeroy had become collided with her, Brendant was instantly bowled over. Unable to stop her own momentum,

model of the armour was merely the first. In her eyes, it was a crude and brutish thing,